Su Qing smiled and nodded at Liang Yueru.
Then, she performed a hand seal and departed on her Somersault Cloud.
After Su Qing left, Liang Yueru exhaled a long breath of turbid air.
"I truly didn't expect... what I thought was a disaster would end up being such a blessing."
Liang Yueru had always assumed she was merely being used.
But after the events of today, she realized she had truly misunderstood Su Qing—and quite significantly at that.
She had never imagined she would encounter such a kind and powerful senior.
'My luck is truly something else. Every time I think a great calamity is upon me, it turns into a lucky fortuitous encounter...' Liang Yueru thought, shaking her head.
Clearly, in her eyes, meeting Su Qing was a stroke of incredible luck.
She looked up at the sky and couldn't help but smile. Then, she tidied up her things and returned to her house.
On the other side, after Su Qing returned to the inn, she didn't do anything else.
Instead, she spent the night in quiet contemplation.
The next day, Su Qing rose early.
However, Chen Mei had risen even earlier than she had.
When Su Qing pushed open her door and stepped out, Chen Mei was already leaning against the corridor railing, waiting for her.
"You certainly woke up early!" Su Qing wasn't too surprised to see her there. She looked at her with a smile and asked, "What’s the matter? Up so early... is there something else? Are you planning to ask me to help return that spear?"
Chen Mei shook her head and said, "No, it’s nothing like that. I’ve already returned the spear to its owner. I’m waiting here so early today because I have some things I want to ask you, Sister Su."
Chen Mei hadn't forgotten the original reason she came to High Eagle City. After returning from Liang Yueru's the first time, she had found the time to deliver the item.
So, there was naturally no need to go again.
Hearing this, Su Qing put on a timely expression of surprise.
"Oh, it’s already been delivered? I thought you had just put it down and weren't carrying it around anymore." Su Qing leaned against the doorframe and said with a smile, "So, what questions do you have for me today? Go ahead. As long as I can answer them, I won't be stingy with my words."
Su Qing certainly wouldn't be stingy with her answers... but whether she would answer truthfully was another matter entirely.
Thus, she could say such things with ease.
Chen Mei, unaware of Su Qing's internal calculations, let out a small sigh of relief.
She asked, "Sister Su, what are your plans for the future?"
"Naturally, I’ll take Yudie to find new doctors and see if any of them can cure her." Su Qing looked at her with a puzzled expression. "Didn't we already talk about this yesterday? Why are you suddenly asking again?"
Chen Mei didn't explain much, only saying, "Since you’re going to continue your journey, Sister... would you like to travel with me for a while longer? Perhaps if we travel together, we might stumble upon a solution eventually?"
Hearing this proposal, Su Qing shook her head without a second thought.
She rejected the kind offer quite decisively.
She had gone through all this trouble just to make her departure feel natural. If she agreed to this proposal, all her previous preparations would have been for nothing.
So, Su Qing naturally wouldn't agree.
However, she also understood that doing this would be unfair to Chen Mei and would surely make her feel slighted.
Su Qing wasn't a fool; she could see that Chen Mei truly wanted to continue traveling with her.
If she didn't have other responsibilities, Su Qing wouldn't have minded continuing the journey with Chen Mei. As a travel companion, Chen Mei was excellent, and Su Qing would have been happy to have her company.
But... Su Qing had other things to do.
She had made a promise to her family.
Once this matter was finished, she had to return to manage Changbai Mountain and arrange for them to move to Great Emperor Zhenwu's Daoist field to be with her.
Therefore, Su Qing could not break her word.
Since it was decided, she couldn't change her mind, especially since it involved her family.
Thus, she chose to make a clean break to avoid the complications of a long, drawn-out goodbye. After all, cutting meat with a blunt knife was far more agonizing.
Even so, with such a clean break, Chen Mei was destined to receive a disappointing answer.
Sure enough, after understanding Su Qing's intent, Chen Mei froze in place. She stood there dazed for a long while, as if contemplating something or perhaps just accepting reality.
After a long silence, Chen Mei finally exhaled a long breath of turbid air.
With a helpless expression and a bitter smile, she said, "It seems we must part ways after all."
Su Qing nodded and said, "Indeed. Is there any banquet in the world that does not end? Besides, you couldn't possibly follow me forever, could you? Don't you have your own affairs to attend to?"
Chen Mei fell silent for a moment, then nodded slightly.
"Yes, all good things must come to an end. And I do indeed have many matters I need to handle personally. It’s just... I feel a bit unwilling..."
Su Qing nodded silently, offering no further words.
Seeing this, Chen Mei said, "However, you aren't in such a hurry that you must leave immediately, are you, Sister? Why not rest in High Eagle City for another day or two? Consider it a chance to let us say a proper goodbye."
Hearing this, Su Qing was silent for a moment before nodding. "In that case... I’ll do as you say."
Seeing Su Qing nod, Chen Mei said no more. She simply gave a nod in return and forced a smile.
However, that smile looked more than a little strained.
Su Qing could see it, but she didn't know what to say, so she could only pretend not to notice.
"By the way, I’ve already ordered breakfast. Once the others wake up, let's go down and eat together, shall we?" Chen Mei didn't want to continue that topic.
She ended the conversation abruptly and actively steered it elsewhere, fearing that the more they spoke, the harder the parting would become.
Actually, it was quite strange.
Chen Mei wasn't a particularly sentimental person. She had parted ways with people many times before.
But a parting as difficult as this one was a first for her.
Unfortunately, the things that are hardest to let go of are often the ones that cannot be kept. Such is the tragedy of the mortal world.
Su Qing knew Chen Mei didn't want to dwell on the previous topic, so she cooperated fully. She followed the change of subject and chatted about other things while they waited for everyone to wake up and head down for breakfast.
The two didn't have to wait long before the others began to rise one by one.
Su Qing briefly explained her conversation with Chen Mei to the group, stating that she would stay for a few more days to spend time with everyone before they parted ways.
Hearing this, the others naturally had no objections, nor did they show much sadness. They simply ate breakfast while discussing the interesting sights to see in High Eagle City.
And so, Su Qing stayed for a few more days.
During that time, she accompanied everyone, had plenty of fun, and said her goodbyes properly.
Time passed so quickly.
A few days were far too short; in the blink of an eye, they were gone.
It was another early morning.
The day of Su Qing's scheduled departure had arrived.
Parting... it sounds difficult.
But when the moment actually came, no one was crying.
Instead, they chatted and laughed as they saw Su Qing out of the city. They watched as Su Qing, Yudie, and Bai Rou'er picked up their luggage and walked away.
Along the way, it seemed as if no one was sad, and no one cared about the separation.
After seeing Su Qing off, Chen Mei looked up at the dark clouds in the sky.
She felt as if her mood was just like those clouds—not beautiful at all.
"How annoying! I was hoping for a sunny day for our farewell," Ruan Shuxiang's voice came from beside her. She said, "Don't worry! We’ll meet again in the future! Sister Su said so herself—our karmic fate hasn't run out yet."
Ruan Shuxiang could naturally sense that Chen Mei was the one most reluctant to part. So, once Su Qing's figure had completely disappeared, Ruan Shuxiang couldn't help but offer some comfort.
Hearing Ruan Shuxiang's words, Chen Mei was stunned for a moment.
She turned to look at her, offering a slightly bitter smile.
Ruan Shuxiang believed Su Qing's words implicitly.
But Chen Mei felt that after this parting, there might never be another chance to meet in the future.
As for the claim that their fate hadn't run out... in the end, it was likely just words used to comfort people.
However, she didn't argue with Ruan Shuxiang about it.
She simply nodded and said, "Don't worry, I’m not as fragile as you think. I just genuinely feel the weather today isn't great. It’s affected my mood during this parting somewhat..."
Hearing this, Ruan Shuxiang put on a somewhat dim-witted expression.
Then she nodded thoughtfully and said, "True, bad weather really does affect one's mood."
Seeing her nod, Chen Mei felt a bit helpless.
This girl really was easy to fool. No wonder Su Qing always liked to trick her. Who told her to be so gullible?
But... she also felt a bit envious of her.
After all, being this simple-minded allowed her to be carefree and easily believe Su Qing's nonsense. It allowed her to be so unbothered by this parting.
After a long while, Chen Mei shook her head and said, "Alright, let's head back to the inn first. After that, the two of us will have to part ways as well."
Chen Mei didn't plan to stay with Ruan Shuxiang forever, nor was it possible.
After all, the place Ruan Shuxiang was heading to next was some place called Changbai Mountain, and she didn't even know where that was.
So, she naturally wouldn't follow Ruan Shuxiang blindly.
Besides, she did indeed have other things to do, making it even more impossible to wander aimlessly.
Therefore, the two of them naturally needed to part as well.
When Ruan Shuxiang heard Chen Mei's words, she didn't mind much.
She just smiled and nodded, saying, "Yes, we’ll be parting soon too... Oh, by the way, where are you going after we part?"
Ruan Shuxiang wanted to chat more with Chen Mei. After all, once they parted, she wouldn't have the chance to chat like this anymore.
Since they still had the opportunity, she wanted to talk her fill.
Of course, there was another purpose to this.
It was to help distract Chen Mei so she wouldn't keep thinking about Su Qing.
Despite how she appeared, Ruan Shuxiang did have some wisdom of her own.
On the other side, after leaving Chen Mei and Ruan Shuxiang, Su Qing led Bai Rou'er and Yudie a long distance away.
Only after confirming that Chen Mei wouldn't see them if she turned back did she slow down.
Once their pace slowed, Bai Rou'er asked, "So, Sister, do you plan to head back to Changbai Mountain first?"
Hearing this, Su Qing naturally nodded and said, "Yes, I do indeed plan to head back to Changbai Mountain first!"
"Then can I come with you to Changbai Mountain?" Bai Rou'er asked next.
She still wanted to see Su Qing's true body. That thought had never changed.
She had simply decided to change her approach and method of meeting.
When Su Qing heard Bai Rou'er's question, she understood her intentions.
After a long silence, she finally nodded and said, "It’s not a problem... I just hope you can be mentally prepared."
Hearing this, Bai Rou'er naturally nodded.
After all this time, she had long since prepared herself.
"Don't worry, I’ve been ready for a long time. No matter the situation, I’m sure I’ll be fine."
Bai Rou'er said with a sweet smile, "Besides... I don't really intend to offer myself in marriage; I just want to repay the kindness you showed me back then, Sister."
That was what Bai Rou'er said, but who knew what she was actually thinking?
At the very least, Su Qing couldn't see her true thoughts. She didn't have mind-reading powers, after all.
And foxes were the best at deceiving people.
However, Su Qing didn't say much more on the matter.
She simply nodded and said, "As long as you’re prepared, that’s for the best."
Then, she looked down at Yudie and said, "Yudie... what about you? Are you ready to go back and see your mother?"
Seeing Su Qing turn the question to her, Yudie nodded and said, "I’ve been ready for a long time. In fact, I can hardly wait."
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